CPI (ML) announces first list of candidates

Parties support Nitish Kumar’s call for Bihar bandh

The Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation announced its first list of 10 candidates for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections on Saturday.

The party has fielded former MP Rameshwar Prasad and former MLAs Rajaram Singh and Mahboob Alam.

CPI (ML) currently does not have a sitting MP or MLA in Bihar. It secured a 2 per cent vote share in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls.

Meanwhile, the party has called for a Bihar bandh on Sunday on the issue of special status.

At a press conference, party general secretary said Dipankar Bhattacharya said the Janata Dal (United) and the Bharatiya Janata Party had to answer for not giving special status to Bihar during the National Democratic Alliance rule at the Centre.

"The special status should have been given at the time of Bihar's division, as it has been done in the case of Andhra Pradesh. When Bihar was subdivided [in 2000], the NDA government was at the Centre and Nitish Kumar was a minister," he said.

Meanwhile, the Communist Party of India has declared in principle support to the CPI (ML)’s call for a bandh.

The CPI and CPI (M) have also announced their support for the Bihar bandh called by Mr. Kumar on March 2.